


Dog Park Christmas

by jbn42



Series: Dog Park [4]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, Did I Mention Fluff, Dogs, F/M, Family, Found Family, Giant Christmas trees, Snowball Fights, completely unrepentant fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-17
Updated: 2019-12-17
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:09:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21839497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jbn42/pseuds/jbn42
Summary: Two Christmases from our Dog Park couple.
Relationships: Finn/Rose Tico, Poe Dameron/Rey
Series: Dog Park [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1527863
Comments: 4
Kudos: 38





	Dog Park Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: Back to the Dog Park. Holiday Edition! This is unrepentant fluff. UNREPENTANT.
> 
> *You do kind of need to read the other stories in the series (short ones, at least for me) for this to make sense.*
> 
> Disclaimer per usual – I do not own Star Wars or any aspect of the SW universe; just a fan with an idea. No profit here, just fun for me.

_First Christmas_

“How did I let you talk me into this?” Poe swears as he drags the nearly-nine-foot Christmas tree down from the top of his Jeep SUV. “This massive behemoth tree in your tiny loft?”

Rey laughs, helping him as he staggers under the awkward weight. “It didn’t take much talking, as I recall. And it wouldn’t really fit on top of my car.” She refers to the used MINI Cooper S she just bought.

They wrestle the tree into the elevator up to Rey’s apartment over Maz’s shop, and he has to admit (only to himself – he can’t tell Rey, she’d never let him live it down) that the smell of pine and coffee mixing together is oddly appealing. “I really deserve serious ‘good boyfriend’ points for this. That’s all I’m saying.”

Rey peers at him from around the side of the tree, which, while very tall, is actually pretty narrow. Her eyes are soft and affectionate when she says, “Of course. And for helping me put lights on this thing, which you’re about to do.”

He sighs and nods as the doors open. “And for that.”

Over four hours later, it’s dark outside, Bee is asleep on the Christmas tree skirt, and they collapse on the sofa after eating some leftover homemade lasagna, courtesy of Maz. They each have a glass of Claret in hand, and she snuggles in close to his side. He looks up at the tree, and he can’t believe how pretty it is. It’s covered with solid white lights and tons of ornaments she either had, scavenged from thrift and secondhand stores, or bought on sale at a local Christmas shop.

He finds himself thinking about his ex and how this little space above a coffee shop would never have been enough for her. He also wonders, not for the first time, how he managed to get Rey to give him the time of day. He feels a nudge to his side. “What are you thinking about?”

“This year. You. How damned lucky I am and how happy you make me.” He turns his head and presses a kiss to her temple.

“I’m just as lucky, you know? I might still be in that awful extended-stay place if not for you. Rentals are just now loosening up.” She shivers at the thought. Then, she shakes her head slightly. “But I’m not in that awful place. I have a real home, and that’s because of you. I even get to borrow the Best Dog In The World now and then. And, you know, I get you. Which is the best part.”

She sits up slightly, looking at him. He pulls his arm back and puts his glass down on the table, and she does the same. She cocks her head and goes on, “This is my best Christmas ever, Poe Dameron. It couldn’t be any better.”

He leans in and kisses her. “And this is my best Christmas since my mom died, definitely in my top two ever. I hope you don’t mind that it’s really kind of tied with the last one Dad and I got to spend with Mom.”

“If I minded that, I’d be a shit girlfriend, Poe.” She lightly taps the end of his nose and then kisses it. Her brow furrows briefly, like she’s thinking about something.

“Now it’s my turn to ask, Sunshine. What are you thinking about?” He brushes her hair back from her face.

She bites her lip, her cheeks going slightly pink, and then she shyly says, “I love you.”

He blinks. “Wait, you what?”

She snorts and rolls her eyes. “I love you. Lots. I mean tons. I love you tons. It’s kind of embarrassing how much I love you.”

It only takes a moment for his brain to catch up with what she said. Then, he kisses her within an inch of her life. When they pull apart, he gently touches his forehead to hers. “That means I love you, too, by the way.”

She chuckles, that soft, affectionate look returning. “I gathered.”

“Merry Christmas, Sunshine.” He kisses her again, lightly this time.

She snuggles back into his side, handing him his wine glass before picking her own back up. “Merry Christmas, Flyboy.”

X X X X X X X X

_Second Christmas_

“Bailey, put that down!”

It’s Christmas Eve morning, and Rey laughs out loud when an unapologetic beagle races through the kitchen with one of Finn’s snow boots in his mouth. Then, Finn himself slides past her, giving chase to the dog. She calls after him, “Finn, if you chase her, she’ll just keep running. You know that.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, Peanut.” His voice fades as, despite advice, he keeps chasing the dog. A moment later, Maggie and Bee, hers and Poe’s dogs, shoot past, barking at the commotion.

“Bet you thought you’d get to have a nice, quiet Christmas in your new house.” Rey turns to see a small woman leaning on the breakfast bar, grinning.

“Rose, I never would expect quiet, not with two Damerons, a Trooper, and five dogs.” Kes is here, too, with his own Toller, Daisy, and one other dog. He recently closed up on his breeding (living up to his vow that Maggie’s litter would be his last), becoming a dog foster parent instead. He has a black Lab with him along with Daisy, who he is fostering until some time in January. That lumbering old boy is asleep, Daisy curled up with him, next to the fire in the living room.

Rose, now wife of Finn, both of them Rey’s former roommates, comes over to her where she is taking some Christmas cookies out of the oven. “You love this, don’t you?”

Rey nods and surveys the room as she sips some hot tea with honey, fighting a cold. They have another giant tree, flanked by a smaller one covered with USAF (Air Force) ornaments and another smaller one covered with things that Poe deemed “British,” like double-decker bus ornaments and union jacks. There is a fire blazing in the fire place, and she can see Poe and Kes on the deck shoveling snow. It’s a full house, one they moved into last month after they were finally able to buy it from Poe’s friend Snap.

The house, an older contemporary cabin, sits on a small but secluded lot not far from the UC Colorado Springs campus. Snap spent two years updating it only to get offered a transfer inside his own company to a dream job in Seattle. So, they’re lucky – the house has all new wood plank floors, a refurbished stone fireplace, and brand new paint, as well completely gutted out bathrooms and kitchen. It’s a beautiful place, and she loves that it’s full for the holidays.

She’s also glad that she and Poe are free for another three weeks. They are heading up to Breckenridge after New Year’s to go skiing (well, him skiing, her snowboarding), staying with Kes for a few days and then at a nice cabin she booked, one right at the slopes for three nights. Kes already agreed to keep the dogs while they go, and it’s one of her presents for Poe for Christmas.

She hears more commotion and looks over to see Finn, finally in both boots, letting all of the dogs out on the deck and following them. Rose comes back through the kitchen in full snow gear a moment later. She pauses. “You stay in here, missy. Don’t make that cold worse. Now, I’m going to go kick my husband’s ass in a snowball fight. Your lovely fiancé already agreed to help me. We’re going to ambush Finn. Should be fun.”

Rey chuckles, amused at the near-feral look on Rose’s face. “Carry on, then.” She shoos Rose out. A moment later, she peers out the window when she hears a shout and then laughs out loud at the sight of Poe and Rose ganging up on Finn while Finn yells at them and the dogs try to chase the snowballs.

She shakes her head and rolls her eyes, and a voice makes her jump. “Shara would be right in the middle of all of that, you know.”

Turning, she sees Kes standing there watching the snowball fight through the window, his parka and boots by the door. “Would you like some tea?” She motions to the kettle.

He grins as he sits on one of the barstools at the breakfast bar. “Coffee, maybe?”

Rey nods, going to the coffee maker and pouring him some that she made a while ago, knowing they’d all come back in soon, shivering and looking for something warm. She adds one sugar and passes the mug to him, and she can tell by his expression that he’s surprised she remembered. She smirks. “Kes, I have fewer than ten people I’m close to in my entire life. I can remember how they take their coffee.” Bringing her tea, she sits next to him on the other barstool.

His expression softens, and he says, “Well, I’m very happy to be in that very select group, mija.”

He holds up his mug, and she clinks hers against it. “And I’m very happy that you want to be in the group, Kes.”

Kes looks back out the window, where Poe now stands off to the side, watching Rose and Finn pelt each other with snowballs. Poe turns, and he waves at them, grinning. They both wave back. “He’s happy. So happy, mija. You’ve given me back his real grin. It faded a lot after Shara died and completely when Kay screwed him over, and it’s back. My boy is completely back. I don’t think I can even explain what that means to me.”

Rey has to swallow back some tears, and she guesses that this would be a good time to lighten things. She looks at Kes over the edge of her tea mug. “So, did Poe tell you that I met Kay, that we ran into her?”

Blinking, Kes shakes his head. “No! When? Where? And what happened?”

Rey goes on to recount the story of the day she met Poe’s ex at the dog park in Breckenridge. Kes darkens briefly at the mention of Kay’s plans to pursue Poe again, but then he howls with laughter at Rey’s description of Kay’s reaction to realizing who she is and how the woman looked ill when Poe showed up.

“What’s so funny in here?” Poe wraps his arms around her waist from behind her on the barstool where she sits, making her jump before relaxing back into him. He leans around and presses a kiss to her cheek.

Rey turns and pecks him on the lips. “I was telling Kes about meeting Kay and protecting your honor.”

Poe chuckles, and he takes her empty mug along with his dad’s and goes into the kitchen, setting about making new drinks for both of them. The sight warms Rey. She’s never really had anyone in her life who just takes care of people without being asked. That’s just what Poe does – he takes care of people. “That was a good morning, I must say. I think Kay might’ve actually peed herself.”

Rey rolls her eyes. “I am not particularly scary, you know.”

“Rey, you were obviously pissed, and you have at least six inches on her. I also think she knows she was kind of being gross about things. She was terrified.” Poe hands Kes a fresh cup of coffee, and then he turns to pour hot water over the new green tea bag in Rey’s mug, putting it and some honey and a spoon down in front of her. He comes back a moment later with his own cup of coffee, standing across the breakfast bar from them. “I also know she’s kind of a chickenshit, completely afraid of direct conflict. I mean, she dumped me in an email and overnighted the ring, for God’s sake.”

“What?” Kes looks enraged. “You never told me that.”

“I know, Dad. I never told you because one, it was kind of humiliating and I didn’t want to re-live it, and two, because I knew you’d drive down there to her house and make a fuss, and she really wasn’t worth it.” Poe shrugs.

“But mijo –” Kes starts.

“No, Dad, she wasn’t worth it. Period. And really,” he inclines his head towards Rey (who knows she also looks really pissed off), “I think I got the better end of things, given that she’s divorced and prowling and I’m engaged to the smartest and most beautiful woman in Colorado.”

Rey snorts, her anger fading slightly. “How are you so nice about it, Flyboy?”

He shrugs again. “I’ve had ten-plus years to get over it, Sunshine. It hurt for a while. Then I realized I was a lot better off. Running into her last summer just solidified that for me.”

“Amen to that.” Kes raises his mug again, and all three of them clink them together. He looks thoughtful for a moment. “What did you do with the ring, by the way?”

Poe rubs the back of his neck with his free hand, looking a little sheepish. “I know I should have sold it or something, but I was pretty pissed and also figured no one needed that kind of shitty karma. I kept it in a drawer in my old room at your house for a bit, but now it’s somewhere at the bottom of a ravine on the road between here and Breckenridge. I found it when I was packing up to move here to teach at the Academy. Shoved it in my pocket and just tossed that shitty karma right out the window on my way here to start my job.”

Both Rey and Kes look amused at that. “Damn, I love you, mijo. How did I raise such a decent kid?”

Rey bumps Kes where he sits next to her. “I think, Kes, that it’s because you’re damned decent yourself. Handsome, too, for what it’s worth. Just my opinion.”

Kes blushes lightly at that, and Rey exchanges a glance with Poe, who is looking at her with naked affection. Kes stands and drops a kiss on top of Rey’s head. “Cheeky thing.”

As Kes leaves, Poe comes and sits down next to Rey. “You made my dad blush. Not many can do that. Well played, Kenobi. Well played.”

She laughs. “He’s adorable, Poe. It’s nice to know what it’s like to have a dad who gives a shit.”

He wraps his arm around her at that remark, and she’s grateful that he doesn’t try to tell her how sorry he is about her crappy childhood. Instead, he just asks, “What time is Maz coming over tomorrow?”

“Noon. After she closes.” Maz opens one of the shops, the one under his and Rey’s old loft apartment, from 7 am to 11 am on Christmas morning. She works it herself, alone unless an employee volunteers. It’s usually surprisingly busy, and a few years, Kes and Poe even worked it with her.

“I’m glad she’s coming. She’s like my quirky aunt. Always amusing and a heart of gold.” He smiles.

“And the other person who can make both you and your dad blush in the blink of an eye.” Rey grins back.

He rolls his eyes. “And that.”

“I love you both, Flyboy. A whole lot. Maz too.” She leans in and kisses him lightly. “I need to stop that. I’m going to give you my cold.”

He doesn’t let her pull back. “We all love you a whole lot too, Sunshine, and I can brave your cold.”

“Bold, Dameron. Very bold.” He gets up, seeing the others about to come in.

He looks at her and smirks. “Given what we got up to last night, I’m fairly certain that ship has sailed anyway.”

“What ship?” Poe’s eyes widen as Rose and Finn come into the kitchen, and Rose asks the question.

Poe gives Rey a look, and she leers at him. “Yes, Poe, what ship, hmm?”

His cheeks go slightly pink as he looks between Rey and Rose, and then he rolls his eyes again. “Ignore her, Rosie. No ships here. None at all.”

Rose and Finn both look at them strangely and then go to their room to change into dry clothes. As they go, Poe turns and tries to give her a stern look. He fails miserably, his eyes soft. Rey bats her eyes innocently. “What?”

He teasingly scowls at her. “Behave yourself, Kenobi. I’m watching you.”

She waggles her fingers at him. “Ooooh, I’m so scared.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He snorts before sighing as he looks at her across the bar, a fond expression on his face. “Merry Christmas, Sunshine.”

She starts to respond, but she just sneezes instead, making him laugh. She laughs too as he starts making lunch for all of them, refusing to let her help and quietly humming “Living on the Edge.”

She lets him boss her around for today, just enjoying the quiet; soon, they’re joined by Finn, Kes, and Rose in the kitchen as the dogs collapse in a furry pile back by the fireplace. Rose parks herself on the stool next to Rey, and they laugh and toss out advice and commentary on how badly the guys are messing up lunch, so much so that Finn dubs them “Statler and Waldorf.” She and Rose then argue about which one of them is Statler and which one is Waldorf.

As she twirls her engagement ring on her finger, it occurs to Rey that this year is even better than last year. For the first time in her life, she feels like she has a complete family, as odd a group as they are. Every once in a while, Poe will catch her eye like he knows what she’s thinking about. He’ll just nod and smile in agreement and keep going, and Rey can’t remember every being this happy in her life.


End file.
